as in spoiling
to treat with great or excessive care
refused to mollycoddle her malingering son and sent him off to school
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mollycoddling
Verb
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Many of the nation's 11 million residents struggle to keep food from spoiling.—
MATTHEW LEE,
Arkansas Online,
22 Mar. 2026 -
As Cuba’s economic crisis deepens and amid the fuel shortages and the blackouts, hospitals have been hard hit, leaving patients in the dark and medicine at risk of spoiling.—
Carmen Sesin,
NBC news,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The elder Junod gave off mixed messages, abusing his long-suffering wife while indulging his gifted son.—
Hamilton Cain,
Time,
3 Mar. 2026
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There’s a conversation for Nebraska worth indulging this spring.—
Mitch Sherman,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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According to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, the calf stood, took early steps, and began nursing shortly after birth.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
24 Mar. 2026
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The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium said the calf stood, took early steps, and began nursing shortly after birth and is now acclimating to his surroundings in the giraffe barn.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Leisure bred laziness; coddling meant spoiling.—
Alexandra Schwartz,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
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His whole combo — coddling yet revering — makes clear how this hopeless estate chugged along for so long.—
Theater Critic,
San Francisco Chronicle,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Conceivably one or two of them should have already been at Citi Field, but until finally summoning McLean to pitch Saturday, Stearns has been babying them in the minors.—
Bill Madden,
New York Daily News,
16 Aug. 2025
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However, some have criticized employer techniques for tracking in-office attendance as babying employees and demonstrating an unwarranted lack of trust.—
Scharon Harding,
ArsTechnica,
8 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Mollycoddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mollycoddling. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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